Drew Mehringer Hired As Tight Ends Coach
01/04/22 | Football
EUGENE, Ore. — Oregon football head coach Dan Lanning filled another spot on his coaching staff on Tuesday, officially announcing Drew Mehringer as the Ducks' new tight ends coach.
"I am fired up to bring Drew Mehringer to Eugene. He is one of the top young offensive minds in college football with an impressive history coaching multiple different positions. He was once the youngest play caller in the Power 5, and that experience will be very beneficial as we develop our offense. Our student-athletes are going to love working with Coach Mehringer and will learn a ton from him both as football players and as young men. I am excited to welcome Drew and his wife, Morgan, to the Duck family, and want to congratulate them as they anticipate the birth of their first child together."
Mehringer joins the Ducks after spending 2021 at New Mexico as passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the Lobos. He spent 2014 at James Madison and 2015 at Houston before becoming the youngest coordinator in the Power 5 as Rutgers' OC in 2016 at the age of 28. He was the pass game coordinator and wide receivers coach at Texas from 2017-19, and then worked as co-offensive coordinator and receivers coach at Florida Atlantic in 2020.
"My wife Morgan and I are unbelievably grateful to Coach Lanning for the opportunity to be a part of such an incredible staff," Mehringer said. "It's not common to see such a great group of people come together like this. Coach Lanning's energy and passion for the players and the game resonate through the rest of the staff. Oregon is one of the most recognizable brands on earth. People like Phil Knight and Rob Mullens have built this into a place that most people only dream of. It's not enough to just be associated, though. I look forward to helping drive the program onward and upward. The vision for the program is lofty and aggressive, and that's something that I wanted to be a part of.
"I am excited to mentor, coach and develop such a great group of tight ends. Players are always the best part of the job, and the ones that I have had the chance to meet share the same passion I have. Morgan and I can't express our gratitude enough and are so excited to be part of Oregon family. Go Ducks!"
Mehringer is the eighth assistant coach hire for Lanning, joining offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham, co-defensive coordinator Matt Powledge, cornerbacks coach Demetrice Martin, defensive line coach Tony Tuioti, associate head coach and offensive line coach Adrian Klemm, special teams coordinator and nickels coach Joe Lorig, and co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach Junior Adams.
Mehringer worked with New Mexico's quarterbacks in 2021 after helping Florida Atlantic to an undefeated home season and a spot in the Mongomery Bowl in 2020.
Mehringer took over as Rutgers' offensive coordinator in 2016 and installed a new offense under first-year head coach Chris Ash. He then went to Texas – following longtime mentor and head coach Tom Herman – where he made a big impact on Longhorns receivers in three seasons.
In 2018, Lil'Jordan Humphrey racked up the third-most receiving yards in program history with 1,176, and Collin Johnson finished just 15 yards shy of 1,000 to give Texas the second-best receiving duo in program single-season history.
Mehringer got his first full-time coaching role as co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at James Madison in 2014, helping the Dukes advance to the FCS Playoffs. The offense ranked 10th nationally with 484.6 yards per game on the arm of quarterback Vad Lee, who finished fourth for the Walter Payton Award and was a third-team AP all-American. Lee set single-season program records for completions (282), yards (3,462), touchdowns (30), and total yards of offense (4,288).
Mehringer went from James Madison to Houston, serving as wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator under Herman in 2015. He helped the Cougars to their second-ever 13-win season and 11th conference championship, culminating in a 38-24 win over No. 9 Florida State in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. Houston finished No. 8 in the AP polls, its highest finish since 1979.
With Mehringer coaching the receivers, Houston ranked in the top 20 nationally with 484.1 yards per game and was one of three teams in the country to average more than 235 yards per game both rushing and passing. Four receivers made at least 25 receptions for 300 yards headlined by first-team all-AAC selection Dmarcus Ayers, who led the conference and ranked sixth nationally with 98 catches for 1,222 yards and six touchdowns.
After suffering a career-ending injury as a quarterback at Rice, Mehringer worked as student assistant for the Owls from 2007-09 before going to Iowa State as a graduate assistant in 2010-11. He earned a full-time coaching role at James Madison in 2014 after spending 2012-13 as a graduate assistant at Ohio State, working with the program's tight ends and receivers in his first year and the offensive line in his second.
Mehringer earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Rice in 2010, and a Master's degree in sports management from Ohio State in 2013.
"I am fired up to bring Drew Mehringer to Eugene. He is one of the top young offensive minds in college football with an impressive history coaching multiple different positions. He was once the youngest play caller in the Power 5, and that experience will be very beneficial as we develop our offense. Our student-athletes are going to love working with Coach Mehringer and will learn a ton from him both as football players and as young men. I am excited to welcome Drew and his wife, Morgan, to the Duck family, and want to congratulate them as they anticipate the birth of their first child together."
Mehringer joins the Ducks after spending 2021 at New Mexico as passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the Lobos. He spent 2014 at James Madison and 2015 at Houston before becoming the youngest coordinator in the Power 5 as Rutgers' OC in 2016 at the age of 28. He was the pass game coordinator and wide receivers coach at Texas from 2017-19, and then worked as co-offensive coordinator and receivers coach at Florida Atlantic in 2020.
"My wife Morgan and I are unbelievably grateful to Coach Lanning for the opportunity to be a part of such an incredible staff," Mehringer said. "It's not common to see such a great group of people come together like this. Coach Lanning's energy and passion for the players and the game resonate through the rest of the staff. Oregon is one of the most recognizable brands on earth. People like Phil Knight and Rob Mullens have built this into a place that most people only dream of. It's not enough to just be associated, though. I look forward to helping drive the program onward and upward. The vision for the program is lofty and aggressive, and that's something that I wanted to be a part of.
"I am excited to mentor, coach and develop such a great group of tight ends. Players are always the best part of the job, and the ones that I have had the chance to meet share the same passion I have. Morgan and I can't express our gratitude enough and are so excited to be part of Oregon family. Go Ducks!"
Mehringer is the eighth assistant coach hire for Lanning, joining offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham, co-defensive coordinator Matt Powledge, cornerbacks coach Demetrice Martin, defensive line coach Tony Tuioti, associate head coach and offensive line coach Adrian Klemm, special teams coordinator and nickels coach Joe Lorig, and co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach Junior Adams.
Mehringer worked with New Mexico's quarterbacks in 2021 after helping Florida Atlantic to an undefeated home season and a spot in the Mongomery Bowl in 2020.
Mehringer took over as Rutgers' offensive coordinator in 2016 and installed a new offense under first-year head coach Chris Ash. He then went to Texas – following longtime mentor and head coach Tom Herman – where he made a big impact on Longhorns receivers in three seasons.
In 2018, Lil'Jordan Humphrey racked up the third-most receiving yards in program history with 1,176, and Collin Johnson finished just 15 yards shy of 1,000 to give Texas the second-best receiving duo in program single-season history.
Mehringer got his first full-time coaching role as co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at James Madison in 2014, helping the Dukes advance to the FCS Playoffs. The offense ranked 10th nationally with 484.6 yards per game on the arm of quarterback Vad Lee, who finished fourth for the Walter Payton Award and was a third-team AP all-American. Lee set single-season program records for completions (282), yards (3,462), touchdowns (30), and total yards of offense (4,288).
Mehringer went from James Madison to Houston, serving as wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator under Herman in 2015. He helped the Cougars to their second-ever 13-win season and 11th conference championship, culminating in a 38-24 win over No. 9 Florida State in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. Houston finished No. 8 in the AP polls, its highest finish since 1979.
With Mehringer coaching the receivers, Houston ranked in the top 20 nationally with 484.1 yards per game and was one of three teams in the country to average more than 235 yards per game both rushing and passing. Four receivers made at least 25 receptions for 300 yards headlined by first-team all-AAC selection Dmarcus Ayers, who led the conference and ranked sixth nationally with 98 catches for 1,222 yards and six touchdowns.
After suffering a career-ending injury as a quarterback at Rice, Mehringer worked as student assistant for the Owls from 2007-09 before going to Iowa State as a graduate assistant in 2010-11. He earned a full-time coaching role at James Madison in 2014 after spending 2012-13 as a graduate assistant at Ohio State, working with the program's tight ends and receivers in his first year and the offensive line in his second.
Mehringer earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Rice in 2010, and a Master's degree in sports management from Ohio State in 2013.
